Free Muffins & Murder (Sweet Bites Book 3) (Sweet Bites Mysteries) by Heather Justesen Page A

cinnamon roll into his mouth, grabbed his drink, and saluted me with it as he headed for the door.
    “Have a good day,” I said to his retreating figure.
    Great, so Connie was out of the mix. Time to turn my attention another direction. And to the customer walking through the door.
    I made myself smile at the mailman, Ben, who had entered when Tingey opened the door. “How are you doing today?” I asked as he passed over the stack of bills and junk mail.
    “I’m doing just fine, how about you?”
    “Great.” Ben studied my display case for a moment. “How are things coming with that murder you’re investigating?”
    “Who says I’m investigating anything?” I asked.
    He shot me a disbelieving look. “I may not have been around for your other cases, but I’ve heard what a great sleuth you are. Don’t tell me you aren’t checking into things.”
    “What do you want today?” I changed the subject. If they arrested Cole, or found evidence he was involved, there was nothing left for me to do.
    “Fine. I wasn’t trying to be pushy.” He leaned onto the counter. “Could I get one of those sugar cookies?” he pointed to the ones I’d spent way too long adding sprinkles and other fun details to that morning. “I can’t get enough of your cookies, Miss Crawford.”
    When I bagged the treat and looked up at him, he was watching me with a soft smile. “You ever cook for private parties?” he asked.
    Was he coming on to me? “We cater for parties of all sizes, yes.”
    His smile grew. He was a probably around forty, a tad old for me, but not that bad. He had a full head of hair and really great eyes, but I hadn’t gotten the impression that he’d even noticed me before. Not that I’d given him a second thought either.
    Ben passed over a few bills for his snack. “I was thinking more private than that. Like a party of two. Me and you.”
    Definitely hitting on me then. I didn’t know what to say; he’d taken me completely by surprise.
    “Tess, I’ve got a problem in here. Can you spare a minute?” Lenny asked.
    That broke me out of my shock. “Um, excuse me. Have a good day, Ben,” I said before turning away and going into the kitchen.
    “It looked like you might need rescuing,” Lenny said in a low voice when I walked close. He watched me for a second. “Are you sorry I pulled you away? He seems nice enough. I guess.” His nose wrinkled. “If you’re into that smooth, suave type.”
    Before I could answer he tipped his head. “Then again, you seem to like Shawn, and he fits that description, doesn’t he?”
    “You say that like Ben and Shawn must be snakes.”
    “Fine. Throw away things with Jack now they’re finally starting to go somewhere and go out with that joker instead. He’s not good enough for you.” He’d never liked Shawn, either, from the moment they met. But maybe that was because Shawn worked for border patrol and Lenny wasn’t a big fan of cops.
    “And you’re a judge of who’s right for me because?” I put my hands on my hips, still not sure why I was angry with him. I really wasn’t interested in Ben.
    Lenny lifted his hands defensively. “Sorry, I’ll butt out.”
    “Good.”
    The door chimed again and I whirled back to the front to greet the customer—not smiling this time—until I saw Marge hobble in.
    “What’s with the scowl? With a look like that, it’s a wonder you ever get customers in here,” she chided.
    I sucked in a deep breath and let go of my irritation, greeting my late grandma’s closest friend. Despite her advanced age, she still ran her gift shop across the street. “Hey, Marge. Sorry. Sometimes I wish I’d hired a sweet teenager right out of high school instead of an opinionated assistant pastry chef.” I said this part a little louder for Lenny to hear me.
    “I love you too, Tess,” he called back even louder.
    The guys in suits snickered.
    Marge shook her head. “You two are a funny pair. I thought I could use a snack and